


The Last Stand

by Varalence



Series: Dusk and Dawn [2]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Bittersweet Ending, F/M, Final Battle, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:55:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27190717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Varalence/pseuds/Varalence
Summary: And so the knight stands alone
Relationships: Jaune Arc/Pyrrha Nikos
Series: Dusk and Dawn [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1984843
Comments: 3
Kudos: 9





	The Last Stand

Jaune watched as the great castle doors slammed shut behind him. 

_It’s all on you guys now._ He thought as he turned his attention back to the approaching horde. Standing on the narrow bridge to Salem’s citadel, Jaune readied himself as the black tide drew near. Grimm, near infinite in number and strength were barreling down at him, the only thing standing between the Grimm and his friends’ mission. Most people would have broken under the gravity of the situation, but instead, he smiled. 

_A hero’s death. Well there are worse ways to go._ Raising his shield and sword, Jaune dropped into a stance, ready to face the enemy. 

Instead the horde slowed down and stopped at the neck of the bridge. Jaune’s eyes narrowed. Something wasn’t right. The Grimm were waiting, staring at him instead of attacking. This wasn’t normal, something was off. But what was it? Then it seemed the horde was parting down the middle for something. The Grimm were all stepping off to the side, as something, no, someone approached. Jaune could hear the sound of approaching footsteps, boots against the rocky ground. Slow, methodical, and the Grimm were clearing the way for it. When the last beowulf stood back, **_it_** came into view.

Jaune was stunned for a moment, recognizing what it was. A warrior in black and white bone armor decorated with red markings, wielding a spear, and a shield similarly designed. Its face was masked by a helmet, with a single red glowing eye visible. From the back of its head, was a cascade of scarlet hair, that billowed in the dry winds of the grimm lands. The warrior stopped at the entrance of the bridge. There was a cracking sound, as its helmet shifted open, revealing-

“Pyrrha…” 

Before him, stood Salem’s champion. One of her most powerful generals during the course of this war. The one that had single handedly led to Atlas crashing into the sea, and slayer of countless soldiers and huntsman. A cursed resurrected reflection of his beloved. Instead of the warm face he once knew, this monster before him had ashen white skin, and black eyes with crimson pupils underneath. She cracked a fanged smile at Jaune. 

“Hello, darling.” she spoke to him, the voice of his true love, twisted by the malice of Salem.

“No…” Jaune whispered. 

“What’s wrong Jaune? Do you not recognize me?” she taunted him. 

“No…” Jaune repeated again, turning away from the visage in front of him.

“Aw what’s the matter-”  
  
“Stop!” Jaune yelled, a shadow falling over his face. The champion froze, surprised by the outburst. 

“You, are not Pyrrha. You are a monster that has stolen her place.” He slowly leveled his sword at it. “And for spitting on her memory, today at last, You. Will. Die!” That last line echoed across the battlefield. So much raw emotion behind it, for a moment all was silent. Even the Grimm seemed to freeze at the power of his words. Eventually, the likeness of Pyrrha broke free from its silence and smiled. 

“Very well then. I’d like to see you try.” Flourishing her spear as her helmet locked back into place. Jaune similarly readied himself for what was coming next. His shield raised in front, his sword over his shoulder, and his knees bracing for the attack. 

Pyrrha struck first, charging at Jaune with the spear. Jaune felt himself being pushed back from the force of the blow, feet kicking up dust as he slid backwards. However he held his guard. She attacked again and again, a relentless assault of strikes with its spear and shield. Jaune found himself pushed back more and more with each hit, but still he stood his ground. Never relinquishing his guard for a moment.

“What’s the matter, darling?” she taunted as she attacked the knight over and over again. “No stomach for fighting back?” She jumped into the air and threw its spear down at Jaune, who swiped it aside with his shield. However this left him wide open for its follow up and Jaune found himself thrown backwards with a drop kick to the chest. He hit the bridge hard, his armor dampening some of the force, but still rendering him disoriented from the hit. The likeness of Pyrrha strolled forward towards the fallen warrior. Extending her arm out, her spear flew back into her open hand. 

“Was that all? I thought I had taught you better.” She stood over Jaune, spear poised to strike him through the heart. Jaune’s eyes were half open, looking up at his death. 

“I…”Jaune wheezed. 

“What?” She cocked its head to the side confused as Jaune looked her in the eye, smirking.

“I was waiting for you to do that.” With a yell, Jaune’s leg came flying up, kicking the Grimm champion right in the back. Pyrrha stumbled forward, surprised by the sudden hit. In that brief moment, Jaune lashed forward with his shield, striking her right in the stomach, throwing her off and causing her to tumble along the bridge. Jaune leapt to his feet and charged forward, before she could recover. His sword met her shield, as she reflexively defended herself. Jaune grit his teeth as he pushed against the shield, the sound of metal scraping with bone grating against his ears. Growling against the pressure, Pyrrha stabbed at Jaune’s legs from under the shield, forcing the knight to disengage, giving herself the space to get up to her feet. 

Jaune was panting hard from the previous exchange, but it seemed he had dealt a substantial blow to his enemy. She was breathing hard too, black ichor bleeding from its torso, where Jaune had struck with the point of his shield. 

“All that, for a drop of blood?” she taunted at Jaune. 

“A drop or more, it doesn’t matter. I don’t need to win, I just need to make sure you lose.” Jaune replied, his expression like cold steel. The likeness seemed to be taken aback by the response, but didn't have time to consider it before Jaune made his move. The knight kicked off the ground, closing the distance almost immediately, his sword flashed through the air like lightning. The Grimm champion barely had enough time to parry the strike. Had she been a moment slower, she might have lost her head. Her eyes widened in shock at the ferocity of it all. This Jaune was a far cry from the green freshman that Pyrrha had once known. The determined look in his eyes reflected that. There was no longer any hint of fear, hesitation, or wariness. All of it, burned away for a righteous fury that had taken hold of him. 

Jaune pressed the attack, more viciously than before. The Grimm champion now found herself on the back foot, staggering under the endless attacks from the knight. The air echoed ceaselessly with the sound of metal clashing with bone. Every attack met, every blow blocked, every strike countered.The two resembled nothing more than blurs on the bridge, movements so fast and fluid, their colors seem to meld together. Jaune felt his body scream in pain from the stress of the fight but it didn't matter. It did not matter what wounds he suffered, what attacks he took, or what damage he was enduring. Because for the first time in his life, Jaune knew what it meant to fight for something worth dying for. 

And for the first time since her resurrection, the Grimm champion knew fear. Jaune's onslaught was far beyond anything she could have imagined. She, who lead armies, found herself getting pushed back by a singular human who refused to lay down and die. 

_"Inconceivable!"_

She was Mistress Salem's greatest warrior. She would not fall to-

_Clang!_

Her thoughts were interrupted by her shield clattering to the ground. Stunned she looked down at her now empty left hand. 

_"What?!"_

"What's the matter? Forgetting to pay attention?"

Jaune had managed to capitalize on her failing composure and unbeknownst to herself, her technique had gotten more and more sloppy. He was waiting to find a chance to capitalize on that and when a poorly timed parry caused her shield to drop, Jaune followed up with a strike to her wrist that caused her shield to go flying out of her hand. 

The Grimm champion glared back at Jaune, her face twisted in fury under the helmet.

"Don't get full of yourself!" Unbelievably fast she stabbed forward with her spear, aiming to take Jaune's heart. Not expecting the counterattack to be so quick, Jaune didn't have time to dodge out of the way, the spear piercing through his armor and driving into his chest. 

"Urhk!" Jaune gasped as he hacked up blood. 

"Choke on it!" The Grimm champion taunted as she twisted the spear causing Jaune to cough up a new spray of blood. "This is what your hubris gets you! Before me you are nothing!" She took a step forward, plunging the spear deeper into Jaune, who weakly grabbed at it, trying to stop her. 

"I am the greatest champion of Mistress Salem. I cannot fall! I am invincible!" 

"You…" Jaune gasped. 

"What?" She spat.

"You lose." 

Suddenly a flash of white light exploded from Jaune, causing the champion to recoil from the harshness. In that moment with a roar, Jaune drove further into the spear, and stabbed his sword right through the champion's chest. 

The Grimm champion was frozen in shock.

"H-how?" she choked out as her helmet fell away, revealing black ichor dribbling out of her mouth. Jaune was wreathed in a white aura, enveloping him like flames, his eyes alight with righteous fury as he dug the sword deeper into her chest. 

"Pyrrha was the only one who could be called Invincible. And you, are not her!" With a final push, he drove the entire length of the blade through her to the hilt. The Grimm champion gave one final gasp as she went limp and fell over, her pupils dimming from her eyes before completely going black. Her hand fell away from her spear as Jaune finally let out a heavy exhale. His semblance, in his most desperate time it had granted him a miracle. He felt no pain, no weariness, even with the injuries sustained during the fight. Slowly, Jaune got up and broke the shaft off the spear in his chest. Getting up to his feet, he faced the Grimm horde across the bridge. The fight was not over. Not by a long shot.. His aura still enveloped in the flames of his semblance, he raised his sword in challenge. 

"Who's next?"

First a boarbatusk charged at him, Jaune sidestepped it, and brought his sword down across the monster’s back, cleaving it into two. Turning around, he barely had time to react as a beowolf’s claws raked across his shield. The creature drew its arm back to make another swipe, but Jaune was ready for this one. He angled his shield to deflect the claws away and throw the creature off balance before leaping into an uppercut slash, splitting the creature open from torso to neck. It too disintegrated into dust. Slowly, more and more Grimm started to charge onto the bridge, but they were found wanting. Jaune fought, like a man possessed. Hacking off limbs, stabbing through bodies, and bashing with shields left and right. Every blow he took, he repaid by slaughtering several more. But his strength was not infinite. The horde pressed against him more and more, forcing him back towards the citadel gates. With every passing second, he could feel his body failing, as his semblance slowly ran out. Pain was returning, slowly but surely and the wound in his chest from the spear was beginning to flare up more and more. His time was coming to a close, he could feel it as with each passing second, a piece of his life force fell away. 

But death would have to rip him away from this world before he would let himself fall. 

* * *

Jaune, fell back, slumping against one of the gnarled black trees near the bridge. His shield, or what remained of it, fell to the ground next to him as strength left his arms. At his side, was the shattered blade of Crocea Mors, the proud sword now little more than a handle. But that didn't matter. Nothing did anymore. He had done his duty, and around him, the remaining Grimm were dissolving back into nothing. He sighed heavily as he looked up at the crimson sky, at the shattered moon, a thin smile forming on his lips. 

"We had a good run, didn't we." He chuckled as he slowly blinked. The moon was especially bright tonight. It reminded him of the nightlight he slept with back at home, those many years ago. Funny how his mind went back to that now of all times. 

_"Yes, you did."_

Jaune opened his eyes and saw Pyrrha standing before him. The Pyrrha he knew, strong and beautiful, with eyes that sparkled like flawless emeralds, and a warm smile on her face.

"I guess this means I'm done doesn't it?"

Pyrrha nodded. 

_"I'm so proud of you Jaune."_ She knelt down before the knight. _"Now rest, you deserve it."_ She put her forehead against his as his eyes drifted close for the final time. 

After the final battle, they would find Jaune's body, leaning against a tree, despite all his wounds and injuries, a content smile on his face. He was finally at peace. 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Let's keep the feels train going. Grimm Pyrrha has always been an interest of mine to write about. Now I had an excuse. This is what happens when I drink coffee at 3 AM.


End file.
